Uprooted Palestinians are at the heart of the conflict in the M.E Palestinians uprooted by force of arms. Yet faced immense difficulties have survived, kept alive their history and culture, passed keys of family homes in occupied Palestine from one generation to the next.

Saturday, 2 April 2016

Roshan Muhammed Salih, Hafsa Kara Mustapha and Gilad AtzmonLast week prominent US politicians grovelled at the feet of the Zionist lobby in the United States – the American Israel Public Affairs Committee or AIPAC. During the AIPAC conference US leaders voiced their undying loyalty to Israel and their opposition to Israel’s enemies – such as Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah.

Local EditorPalestinian resistane said it is holding four “Israeli” soldiers that it captured during the “Israeli” apartheid regime’s 50-day war on the Gaza Strip in 2014.

During a Friday televised statement, spokesman of Hamas armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, in Gaza Abu Obeida, said the movement has no contacts with the “Israeli” entity over the prisoners.

“There are no talks or negotiations relating to the prisoners,” said Obeida while speaking on the local al-Aqsa TV with a poster behind him showing black-and-white photos of the four “Israeli” soldiers.

The Palestinian official stressed that the “Israeli” entity “will not [be able to] get information on the four without paying a clear price before and after any negotiations” on the issue.

He said that “Israeli” Prime Minister Benjamin “Netanyahu is lying to his people” and “deceiving the families of the captive soldiers.”

Netanyahu recently claimed that “important progress” had been made in obtaining the return of two soldiers imprisoned in Gaza.

Tel Aviv had not made any comment on the announcement so far.

Hamas had refused to say whether the soldiers are dead or alive, but the “Israeli” regime had repeatedly announced that the soldiers were killed during the Gaza offensive and asked Hamas to return their bodies back to the “Israeli” entity.

Meanwhile on Friday, Times of “Israel” online newspaper referred to the four as two slain soldiers Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin as well as 29-year-old Avraham Mengistu, an Ethiopian “Israeli”, along with a Bedouin-“Israeli”.

Mengistu is said to have disappeared after he “independently” entered Gaza on September 7, 2014, two weeks after the end of latest “Israeli” war on Gaza in the summer of 2015.

The second man, whose name had not been released, is a Bedouin Arab from the village of Hura who reportedly entered Gaza via the Erez Crossing in April 2014.

In early July 2014, the “Israeli” apartheid regime waged a war on the Gaza Strip. The 50-day offensive ended on August 26 with a truce that took effect after indirect negotiations in the Egyptian capital Cairo. Nearly 2,200 Palestinians, including 577 children, were martyred in “Israel’s” onslaught. Over 11,100 others – including 3,374 children, 2,088 women and 410 elderly people – were also injured.

Hamas launched retaliatory missile attacks against “Israel”, with Tel Aviv confirming that 53 “Israeli” soldiers were killed in Gaza war. However, Hamas puts the number at around 100.

The “Israeli” regime and Hamas do not officially maintain direct contacts, and any deal would have to be mediated by international parties. In 2011, kidnapped “Israeli” soldier Gilad Shalit was released in exchange for 1,027 Palestinian detainees, in a deal brokered with the help of a German diplomat.

The “Israeli” soldier had been held in the besieged Gaza Strip for more than five years.

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By Richard Edmondson

Blood and human lives, in large amounts, were sacrificed in the retaking of Palmyra. According to one report, more than 180 soldiers with the Syrian Army and their allied forces were killed in the fighting. Doubtless among these are plenty of examples of courage and sacrifice, but one story seems to be emerging above all others–that of Aleksandr Prochorenko.

At just 25 years of age, Aleksandr, a Russian Special Operations officer, was sent into Palmyra in advance of the military drive to liberate the city. His job? To identify ISIS positions and to pass their coordinates along to command for purpose of airstrikes. His was an operation of stealth, and it appears that he entered the city with a small number of other Russian soldiers.

Reports of Russian deaths in Palmyra began to surface in the media in mid-March following claims made in a statement released by ISIS. A website sympathetic to the group referred to “fierce battles around Palmyra city” that ostensibly left five Russian soldiers dead on March 16 and 17. The body of one of the Russians reportedly was shown in a video.

Was this the same group that Aleksandr was part of? My guess would be yes. Exactly what happened is difficult to piece together, but apparently on March 18, Aleksandr found himself completely surrounded by terrorists, most of them probably high oncaptagon and screaming “Allahu Akbar.” Aleksandr did what was necessary to rescue the situation. He called in an airstrike–on himself. The Russian missile killed him along with, most likely, a good number of the screaming Wahhabis.

Aleksandr hailed from the village of Gorodki, roughly 80 miles from the Russian city of Orenburg. According to a report here (in Russian), his family was informed of his death on March 19. “As is customary, the military thanked the parents for having brought such a son,” it says, informing us also that Aleksandr had attended the Military Academy of air defense in Smolensk. (A somewhat revised English version of the report can be accessed here.)

Russian soldiers in Syria are obviously well-trained. But perhaps even more important than that, they are highly motivated. Motivation is important, nay, crucial in war. And it only comes from knowing precisely what you are fighting and why. Russian soldiers know that in ISIS they are battling an evil and malevolent scourge of hideous proportions, this not only in terms of its rank and file recruits but also with regard to the world leaders backing this demonic, hoodlum army. The Russians are exposed to truth through their media, and they have confidence in their country’s leadership. Vladimir Putin’s approval rating in Russia is near 90 percent.

Contrast this to US troops, who, when sent into military ventures in various countries usually haven’t the faintest clue as to why they are there other than the ersatz pretexts voiced to them by their commanders, a good many of whom are regarded as lunatics.

Recently Veterans Today Senior Editor Gordon Duff made a telling observation about US pilots currently on mission in Syria. He writes that they have been observing Russian planes “wipe out targets that America had missed or overlooked or that, according to American pilots, they weren’t allowed to hit.”

Duff goes on to add:

American pilots can bomb, they have the experience, they have the equipment but for some reason, at least to each other and those they trust, they will tell you, against ISIS it has always been “hands off.”

Not so for Russia. For day after day, Russian pilots hit command posts, training camps, wiped out convoys Americans claimed they didn’t see, ammunition storage, and eventually the thousands and thousands of oil trucks American pilots had been begging to attack for months.

Not only were American officials presumably unable to spot the oil truck convoys, but they “didn’t lift a finger” to prevent ISIS from capturing Palmyra, saysBouthaina Shaaban, political advisor to Syrian President Bashar Assad.

“Those who really want to fight terrorism must respond to President Putin’s call and help the Syrian Arab Army and its allies such as Russia, Iran and Hezbollah,” said Shaaban.

On Good Friday, the Syrian Arab Army’s “Tiger Forces,” backed by Hezbollah and Syrian marines, broke through ISIS defenses and entered Palmyra–and on Easter Sunday the city known as the “Pearl of the Desert” was completely secured. Evil suffered a set back. US forces, though ostensibly in Syria to fight ISIS, apparently gave no assistance in the effort.

One website posted a banner reading “Happy Easter from the Syrian Armed Forces,” and indeed much of the world was jubilant, for there was hope that something could yet be salvaged of Palmyra’s once-magnificent antiquities.

“For one year, Palmyra has been a symbol of the cultural cleansing plaguing the Middle East,” proclaimed UNESCO Director Irina Bokova in a statementwelcoming the liberation. “The dynamiting and pillage of its treasures, to break an entire society, sparked a unanimous indignation and strengthened the unprecedented mobilization in favor of the values that unite all humanity.”

Another statement welcoming the liberation was introduced in draft form by Russia at the UN, but at this point Western leaders apparently felt it necessary to mount their true colors. The statement was blocked.

“We are not so much surprised and disappointed by the position of Western colleagues as puzzled by their true intentions in regard to peaceful settlement in Syria,” Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters on Wednesday.

“We thought that the delay of reaction from the Western capitals on Palmyra’s liberation was a coincidence. Now it is evident that this is part of a systematic approach,” she added.

Calling it a “systematic approach” is not an overstatement of the situation, and of course the Zionist media are, as always, a factor in that equation. On WednesdayForeign Policymagazine published an article headlined, “Putin’s Attack Helicopters and Mercenaries are Winning the War for Assad,” in which the Russian leader was accused of spreading “lies and distortions”and of endeavoring to crush “Western-backed moderate Syrian rebel groups.” The writer, James Miller, concocts the theory that Russia’s goal all along has been to “ensure that a popular uprising was crushed, a democratic movement discredited, and a Shiite puppet state propped up.” Presumably Miller prefers the Wahhabi state of Saudi Arabia, though of course he doesn’t openly say so, nor does he bother to mention that the Syrian government under Assad has protected Christians and other religious minorities in the region.

Foreign Policy magazine, by the way, was founded by Samuel Huntington, the progenitor of the “clash of civilizations” theory. That a Zionist, neocon news outlet would accuse a man like Putin of “lies and distortions” is not merely a case of blatant caviling. It borders upon the felonious.

We are now of course less than four months away from the two major-party conventions this summer and just seven months out from the election itself. Should Hillary Clinton win the presidency, I suspect a war with Russia will become a foregone conclusion. Hillary’s comparison of Putin to Hitler is not the only reason I say this. Her personality is the other reason.

Mrs. Clinton strikes me as someone who could easily be manipulated by the Zionists in the State Department, much more so than Donald Trump. The latter, for all hisshameless pandering to AIPAC, is probably less likely to be finagled or cajoled into a war with Russia than Clinton. “America is a thing you can move very easily.” So said Benjamin Netanyahu famously in 2001. A Hillary Clinton presidency, should such come to pass, could well see those words borne out more precariously and dangerously than under any previous predecessor in the White House.

But at any rate, to return to the subject of Syria. The bottom line–it appears as if US forces sat on their haunches and didn’t lift a finger to help free Palmyra, and if that is the case, it begs the question: why are American troops even in Syria at all?

The answer is the same answer that always comes to the fore anytime our country gets involved in another conflict in that part of the world: Israel. Whether the stated claim is eliminating WMDs in Iraq or assisting a supposed “democratic movement” in Syria, thereal objective is always the same: furthering the interests of Israel. In an article published on Easter Sunday, VT Managing Editor Jim Dean took America’s military and intelligence communities to task for not stepping forward to correct the treasonous path our political leaders have steered us upon–and for wanting nothing more than to “continue getting a paycheck, advancement and our applause for defending the country.”He added:

They would say that the public’s awareness of Israeli espionage would destroy public trust in government to such a degree as to be in itself a threat to our national security, which is of course is just a cheap cover, and bull pucky.

They want to hide that our own security people have been criminally negligent in not providing the citizens with critical information to fix an ongoing National Security threat.

So these folks have their reason for copping out. They want political power. They are a few years from retirement and nice big six figure consulting contracts in defense… $5,000-per-month expense accounts, etc. They want to be bought off because they see it as their right — to follow those who have gone before them and been lauded for it by their peers and the sheepeople.

So on this Easter Day, think of your country nailed to the cross and the words “God forgive them, for they know not what they do.” In the situation I have described, they DO know what they have done. So why don’t we Americans treat them as such? Why don’t we see that not doing so undermines our children ever doing anything about it because they have no examples to follow in this regard, and we have allowed them to be brainwashed from birth?

Thankfully for Russian soldiers, they don’t have to contend with any of this. When they are sent to war it is for reasons which are clearly and forthrightly articulated. And when they die it is in the interests primarily of their own country, or else humanity as a whole, rather than the narrow interests of a genocidal, apartheid state that finishes off moribund prisoners with a gunshot to the head as we saw occur in Israel last week.

And so a Russian hero, in the service of what is decent, went above and beyond the call of duty. And the world owes him its thanks. But instead, Western leaders couldn’t seem to bear even a simple statement acknowledging what he and his fellow combatants had achieved.

You might be interested to know that Aleksandr, who has been dubbed “the Russian Rambo,” wasn’t the first in his family to choose military service. He is in fact described as having been “born into a family of servicemen,” and he and his younger brother, Ivan, were both serving as soldiers.

But he had interests outside the military as well. A year and a half ago, Aleksandr, or “Sasha” as he was called by his loved ones, fell in love with and married a girl named Ekaterina. She is at home now in Gorodki–pregnant with their first child.

“He was very open-minded, loved life” said one of his friends. “It seems only yesterday they celebrated their wedding. A year and a half passed. You can’t imagine how happy he was! So in love. For a long time Katya did not know where he was sent. He didn’t want to upset her. She was sure that he served in the Caucasus, but then it turned out he was sent to Syria. Now she sleeps with a photograph of her beloved Sasha.”

Another photo of Sasha rests in a frame on a coffee table in the home of his parents. Also on the table are Christian icons. His mother, Natalia, and his father, Aleksandr, are taking his death very hard. Natalia reportedly has not stopped crying since the news came in.

“I’m sorry, no strength to talk. We do not know how he died. We were told only that it was in combat. This is all very hard for us,” she said.

The parents and the wife are all waiting for the body to be returned from Syria. Commented a family friend, “What a pity that Sasha did not see his child. He wanted a son. Katya worried that Sasha wouldn’t come back in time for the birth. And now he will not…”

But tributes to him have poured in across the world, while comments of an elegiac nature have been posted on Facebook, along with panegyric portraits put up in remembrance as well. In the school he attended in Gorodki, everyone is talking about him, and there are reports of plans to rename the school after him. The governor of the Orenburg region has also visited the family, and a street, too, is likely to be named in his honor. It’s a safe bet that Sasha is going to be remembered for a long time to come.

In his speech before the UN on September 28, 2015, Putin talked about the “export of revolutions” by Western countries seeking to overthrow governments they don’t like in favor of ones who would adopt policies more favorable to the West, all of course done in callous disregard for the consequences–and the Russian leader was honest enough to call this practice what it is: a disaster for humanity.

Rather than bringing about reforms, an aggressive foreign interference has resulted in a brazen destruction of national institutions and the lifestyle itself. Instead of the triumph of democracy and progress, we got violence, poverty, and social disaster. And nobody cares a bit about human rights, including the right to life.

At this point, Putin posed a rhetorical question to the Western leaders who’ve been carrying out these destructive policies–a question which has since continued to ring around the world:

“I can’t help asking those who have forced this situation: do you realize now what you’ve done?”

Note: This piece which is of extreme relevance to the US election campaign was originally published in July 2015.

On July 3, 2015, presidential aspirant Hillary Clinton addressed a hand-picked audience at a Dartmouth College campaign event. She lied calling Iran an “existential threat to Israel… I hope we are able to get a deal next week that puts a lid on (its) nuclear weapons program.”

Even if we do get such a deal, we will still have major problems from Iran. They are the world’s chief sponsor of terrorism.
They use proxies like Hezbollah to sow discord and create insurgencies to destabilize governments. They are taking more and more control of a number of nations in the region and they pose an existential threat to Israel.
We…have to turn our attention to working with our partners to try to reign in and prevent this continuing Iranian aggressiveness.

Fact:US and Israeli intelligence both say Iran’s nuclear program has no military component. No evidence whatever suggests Tehran wants one. Plenty indicates otherwise.

The United States stands with Israel now and forever. We have shared interests….shared ideals….common values. I have a bedrock commitment to Israel’s security.
(O)ur two nations are fighting a shared threat” against Islamic extremism. I strongly support Israel’s right to self-defense (and) believe America should aid in that defense.
I am committed to making sure that Israel maintains a military edge to meet increasing threats. I am deeply concerned about the growing threat in Gaza (and) Hamas’ campaign of terror.

No such campaign exists. The only threats Israel faces are ones it invents.

“I support calling the Iranian Revolutionary Guard what it is: a terrorist organization. It is imperative that we get both tough and smart about dealing with Iran before it is too late.”

She backs “massive retaliation” if Iran attacks Israel, saying at the time:

“I want the Iranians to know that if I’m president, we will attack Iran. In the next 10 years, during which they might foolishly consider launching an attack on Israel, we would be able to totally obliterate them.”

She endorses using cluster bombs, toxic agents and nuclear weapons in US war theaters. She calls them deterrents that “keep the peace.” She was one of only six Democrat senators opposed to blocking deployment of untested missile defense systems – first-strike weapons entirely for offense

Military operations across Syria continued on Thursday, with the army units, in cooperation with the popular resistance, targeting terrorist organizations’ positions and dens and repelling their attack attempts in various areas, leaving many of their members dead and wounded.

Deir Ezzor

The popular resistance in the eastern area killed 30 ISIL terrorists in separate areas in Deir Ezzor and its countryside.

Local sources in al-Mayadeen city told SANA that members of the popular resistance, backed by the locals of the city and the villages of Saalou, al-Shaheil in the southeastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, clashed with ISIL terrorists, killing 10 of them.

Other Five terrorists of the so called ” al-Hesba” were killed in an ambush carried out by the popular resistance in al-Ghabra village , 130 km east of Deir Ezzor city.

In a special operation of the popular resistance in al-Bukamal city, four ISIL terrorists also were killed.

In Deir Ezzor city, at least 11 ISIL terrorists were killed in al-Sina’a neighborhood and the train rail, according to the local sources.

Sweida

An army unit targeted gathering for ISIL terrorist organization in Tal Asheiheb al-Janoubi in northeastern countryside of Sweida province, a military source said.

Heavy losses were inflicted upon ISIL terrorists in personnel and weaponry , the source added.

Hama

Army units, in cooperation with the popular defense groups, thwarted an attack by ISIL terrorists on a number of military posts in al-Sheikh Hilal village in al-Salamiyeh area in Hama eastern countryside, destroying 3 vehicles equipped with heavy machineguns.

In the same context, a source on the ground told SANA that army units and the popular defense groups fired intensively on sites and gatherings of ISIL terrorists in al-Rahjan, Um al-Mayal and Abu Hanaya villages in the eastern part of al-Salamiyeh during the last 24 hours.

A command center and a weapons and ammunition depot were destroyed in the operations, which also left a number of terrorists dead.

Yesterday night, army units clashed with ISIL terrorists who attacked military checkpoints in the area surrounding Wadi al-Azib in the eastern countryside of al-Salamiyeh, killing at least 10 terrorists and destroying one of their vehicles before the other terrorists fled.

In the meantime, army units firmly established posts in the area surrounding Tabaret al-Dibe hill and the surrounding hills after bringing under their firing range the villages of Abu Hbeilat, Abu Hanaya, Salba and other villages that are considered first lines of defense for ISIL in the direction of Ekeirbat, the main stronghold of ISIL in Hama eastern countryside.

Belgian political commentator believes that what European Union is suffering from today in Brussels is the price they all pay for the interventionist policies of western imperialist governments. “We, in Europe, reap what our governments have sown,” Kris Janssen reaffirmed.

In an exclusive interview with Mehr News Agency, (MNA), political commentator on Middle Eastern politics specialized in Syria and Iran Kris Janssen, underlined that the EU terrorist attacks the most recent one being the Brussels triple attacks are direct results of imperialist policies of the Western countries serving Western political goals “being the total destruction of the resistance front against Zionism and Western imperialism and the struggle for independence and dignity of the free people in the Middle East.”

First of all tell us about the atmosphere in Brussels. How is the situation after the triple terrorist attacks?

After the terrorist attacks of Tuesday, 22nd of March, in Brussels the Belgian people are in full shock as this is the first time they are confronted on such a large scale with what we could describe as a real war situation. We watch these atrocities on television taking place far away and the Belgian public don’t really pay much attention to it as it doesn’t have a direct effect on their daily lives. Even with the terrorist attacks in Paris in November 2015 there was some upheaval but, although nearby, the reactions from the people were not really based on the same level of emotion as what happened this week in Brussels. One can say that the Brussels events was a direct hit in the heart of Belgian society. Even when the terrorist attacks in Paris did not have the same impact on the Belgian society as the Brussels attacks, it is clear that what happens ‘far away’ (taking into account that distance has become a very relative concept in this era) as for example the war in Syria, does not really influence public opinion. The hard truth is that the Belgian public, and in a broader context the whole of Europe, has no clue what is really going on in Syria. This total ignorance is the result of a continuous media manipulation in which the real state of events and truth becomes distorted to serve Western political goals, being the total destruction of the resistance front against Zionism and Western imperialism and the struggle for independence and dignity of the free people in the Middle East and the rest of the world. In this context the freely elected President of the Syrian Arab Republic, H.E. Bashar al-Assad, has been ‘demonized’ in our media representations in a frantic and almost pathological way while the Syrian people and government have shown strength, steadfastness and dignity in the past 5 years of bloodshed and enormous human, economical and cultural losses. The Lebanese resistance front Hezbollah has been appointed as a ‘terrorist’ organisation. The Yemeni people are under daily aggression of the Western backed Saudi army. The Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has been killed in cold blood. And the Islamic Republic of Iran has been the victim of vicious sabotage and unjust sanctions for decades also because of its independent and righteous policies and its steadfastness. Because of the manipulations of the Western media organizations, unfortunately the European public have a complete flawed and erroneous worldview and as such they are, even after the tragic events in Brussels of this week, not capable to place these attacks in the correct context of what is happening in the rest of the world.

Also in this same context I want to stress that the real perpetrators and supporters spreading extremism and terrorism, driven by a Salafist doctrine (Saudi Arabia), a neo-Ottoman dream of the revival of this past empire (Turkey) and the financial and logistical endless support to the Muslim Brotherhood (Qatar) are not only ignored by our governments and media but we are willing to do and actually are doing good business with these undemocratic despotic leaders who are on a large scale violating human rights in their own countries and carrying out absolute aggression and interference against other nations and people as for example Yemen and Syria.

How do you analyze the attacks of Brussels? What are the possible causes of the event?

What happened in Brussels last week or in Paris in November 2015 is a direct result of the policies of the Western governments. For years, the American and European governments have been organizing and planning, under the cover of a so called ‘Arab Spring’ and support of ‘democratic reforms’, coup d’états or putsches against governments and peoples who refuse to bow down and kneel to this blackmail or dare to follow an independent course in implementing real political reforms to improve the life of their populations, and not to serve the interests of the post-colonial Western world. Every country which stands up against this aggression and injustice should according to this doctrine be destroyed by military force, suffocating economical sanctions, political tyranny and oppression or even military campaigns if necessary. We have seen throughout recent history several examples of the implementation of this doctrine: Syria, Iran, Libya, Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen, etc… . These operations, with the purpose to destroy all forms of opposition to Western hegemony, do not only serve directly Western policies but are also intrinsically linked to the objectives of the Zionist State of Israel by attempting to destroy or weaken the members of the resistance, eg. Syria, Hezbollah, Iran and everyone who poses a potential threat to Israel.

On the other hand, as explained above, our Western governments are shamelessly dealing, politically and economically, with the real supporters of terrorism and promulgators of extremist ideologies which are inspiring and brainwashing young people who are in a vulnerable situation and who are receptive to these extremist and violent ideas and ideologies as a result of well planned propaganda and a loss or lack of personal self-identification.

Our media, theoretically independent but in reality a powerful tool serving the authorities, have not done anything to inform or rectify public reception during all these years. They have only, in various forms, supported the official government line and have not criticized or even informed the public of the dangerous tactics and lethal policies of extremist governments, specifically Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey. This has led to a carte blanche for them to spread their extremist ideas and teaching into the hearts of European nations and these easily influenced young people and adults.

As a result, thousands of brainwashed youngsters and adults became ruthless murderers and terrorists and traveled to Syria to slaughter the Syrian people and destroy the country in the twisted name of Islam as propagated by the afore mentioned rough States. Now the time has come that some of them start to return to Belgium and other European countries and are walking around freely in our capitals and cities. What happened in Brussels is the price we all pay for the interventionist policies of our imperialist governments. We, in Europe, reap what our governments have sown.

How this tragedy would affect the European Union and its policies regarding the terrorism?

The main goal of the European governments in concordance with their American ally has always been to destroy every form of resistance against Western hegemony. If historical reasons have led us to a situation where these governments have to sleep with the devil to reach their goals, they will not deviate from their path to get what they want to. Yes, they are weeping crocodile tears now and they are showing passionate solidarity with the victims and families of the victims from this attack. But in reality they could have avoided this situation by changing their interventionist policies years ago and ideologically fought off the real dangers threatening our society. Of course they will raise security levels and show compassion and empathy. But is this genuine? Are they really willing to root out evil by changing their policies? They could have done so years ago.

Europe countries seems to turn into a new target for the terrorist groups, what’s your idea on this?

From a strategic point of view Europe is weak with regard to security in comparison with the United States. European States do have capable security services but they are not integrated very well. They all follow their own agenda. These agencies do have some structures of cooperation but in the end they all put their own interests and objectives before. The United States in contrast has a more unified structure which translates itself in the Homeland Security department which acts as an umbrella and coordination center for different security initiatives. The US has learned its lesson after the 9/11 attacks. This makes the US a much more difficult target for carrying out terrorist attacks. Also the political differences between the EU states with regard to for example refugee policies makes it a more vulnerable target. Let us not ignore the huge potential of hundreds of thousands of immigrants but also youngsters and adults belonging to following generations of historical migrant waves in Europe in the past. A lot of these youngsters and adults are in difficult social and economical situations and are dealing with cultural identity crises. These people represent an easy prey for the extremist organizations.

Would the consequences of the attacks affect the refugees?

Public opinion in Europe towards the ongoing refugee crisis can be defined as rather schizophrenic. On the one hand the perception is that we should help these people because, as a result of the afore mentioned media manipulations, most people think they are the victim of brutal ‘regimes’ (in this psychological war our Western media consistently names opposite governments as for example the Syrian government a ‘regime’ to stress the negative connotation) who are slaughtering their population. The European public does not realize that the refugee crisis is the result of our own imperialist policies. But, contradictory, public opposition against this refugee flow is also growing because of cultural frictions and clashes as well as a perceived but also real pressure on our social welfare systems and labour market. In short, yes the Belgian people are in total shock after the terrorist attacks in Brussels but they are not able to place these events in the true context of world politics.

Kris Janssen is a political commentator on Middle Eastern politics, specialized in Syria and Iran as well as Syrian – Iranian relations. He is the Author of several articles and interviews published by newspapers and press agencies in Iran and Syria and broadcasted by several radio- and television stations in the Middle East and Russia. He has also studied 3 years in Cairo, Egypt (Arabic language and Middle Eastern affairs).

Saudi activist on social media, Mujtahid, confessed that Yemeni army and popular committees managed to defeat Saudi-led forces in the Yemeni border area of Rabboua.

Mujtahid, who is a well-known source in the Saudi royal family, said on his Twitter account that the Yemeni allied forces captured a Saudi colonel and many soldiers.

“Unfortunately, Houthis managed following the collapse of the ceasefire to capture several Saudi forces, including Colonel Abdullah Fahd al-Qahtani, during a confrontation in Rabboua town,” Mujtahid tweeted.

Yemen has been since March 26, 2015 under brutal aggression by Saudi-led coalition.

Thousands have been martyred and injured in the attack, with the vast majority of them are civilians.

Riyadh launched the attack on Yemen in a bid to restore power to fugitive president Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi who is a close ally to Saudi Arabia.

However, Yemeni army, backed by the committees has been engaged in battles with Saudi-led mercenaries and Hadi’s militias in several areas across the country.

Yemen’s Ansarullah’s said that the Saudi has been inflicted heavy losses as it breached the ceasefire in Mede Desert in the western province of Hijja.

Ansarullah’s political bureau member Mohammad al-Bakhiti said that the prisoner swap deal which took place recently did not include but one fighter of the revolutionary group, while it included 10 Saud soldiers.

In aninterview with UNews news agency, he noted that the other freed Yemeni detainees are fighters of the home fronts.

Al-Bakhiti said that the swap deal comes as a part of the truce reached between the two sides, stressing that Ansarulla is committed to the truce for the sake of the Yemenis who are suffering from the Saudi-led aggression.

Meanwhile, the Yemeni official lashed out at Saudi, saying that Riyadh is not committed to the truce as the Saudi-led forces repeatedly tried to advance towards Mede.

He warned against more violations of the ceasefire, calling on the Saudis to “respect the ceasefire or fight with honor.”

Yemen has been since March 26, 2015 under brutal aggression by Saudi-led coalition.Thousands have been martyred and injured in the attack, with the vast majority of them are civilians.

Riyadh launched the attack on Yemen in a bid to restore power to fugitive president Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi who is a close ally to Saudi Arabia.

However, Yemeni army, backed by the committees has been engaged in battles with Saudi-led mercenaries and Hadi’s militias in several areas across the country.

Friday, 1 April 2016

The Saudi regime authorities handed in the corpse of the martyr Makki al-Arid who was arrested a month ago at a checkpoint in al-Safwa in Qatif, two days before they tortured and killed him.

The circulated images show how the corpse of the young Saudi is influenced by the torture committed by the regime police who claimed that Arid died due to psychological problems.

Martyr Arid’s family rejected the regime’s extortion to sign a document that indicates that natural reasons was behind his death, asserting that he was martyred due to the severe beating and torturing he suffered at the jail.

Awamiya town and Arid’s family bade farewell to the martyr amid a widespread public anger, knowing that the authorities is still detaining the corpses of a number of martyrs including that of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr.